Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-11-26

Dut nom fs-;-urisr ~annic m ncr ga,t. ncy
are not 81 dark skinned the Nubians: some
in fact are of deep hazel color only. The
warriors costume consists of skins round the
loins, and their heads are adorned with
feathers and small buffalo horns. The
women are plentifully ornamentod with
shells, which circle round the breast and
body. and they have very pretty fashion OF
plating their short, wooily hair in parallel
plaits up 30 the top of the head
| The Ashantecs, as EngiishInen know n
their cost, are the most numerous, vigorous
and warlike of all the native African tribes.
| Al intervals in the day the whole caravan
goes through very curious performance,
which includes singing, n sword dance, the
. firing of arrows high into the air, a mystic
ceremony and wrestling The easy and rapid
way in which the warriors flourish their
weighty swords implies a strength of muscle
III the arm altogether unknown to ourselves.
In the sword dance they gradually wind
l themselves up 10 pitch Of frenzy quite un-
comfortable to the spectator, who nervously
keeps time with his foot To the strum strum
| Of the musical Instruments and the wild
weird chant of the men and women
Mr.. Hood, who is IN charge Of the troupe,
gave me some interesting facts about them
Before could get them to come," began
Mr. Hood, Il had to indemnify Kari Kari
whom the English call King Coffee-and en-
ter into an engagement with the British
| authorities at Cape Coast castle to bring
them safely back home again. There are
nineteen of them. Nine hail from Coomasie.
the capital Of Ashantee: five are natives Of
kokofan. and five Of Liberia They speak
the Fantee tongue They are supposed to be
originally of the same race rs the Fantees,
who are established nearer the Gold coast.
The separation OF the Fantees and Ashantees
is ascribed TO famine which drove the
former south and led them to live on fan, or
herbs, while the latter subsisted on san, or
Indian corn; hence their names
"Ashantee proper is covered with almost
impenetrable forest, the routes through
which consist merely of narrow, winding
tracts. where, though it is possible for a man
TO ride, or palanquin to be carried, no
wagon of any description could pass. Many
of the trees attain splendid proportions, but
the monotony is oppressive. and is hardly
ever relieved by the sight of either bird or
beast. The country round the towns in the
interior is cultivated with care, the fields be-
ing kept clean, and yielding in abundance
- y dAil~s NfrtitbitS
The Ashantees are very skillful, particu-
larly in weaving the great African fabric of
cotton. TheirpotIe and works in gold also
show skill. though surpassed by those pro-
duced in the more southern countries. That
man there" pointing 10 koaku) ..is a gold
smith, and n first class hand as silver plate
work. Not the least remarkable objects
fashioned by him are masks Of beaten gold
for the kings palace ut at Coomassie
The lower orders are held in complete
thralldom. and liable to be put to death or
sold into slavery at the will of the chiefs.
fte king is supreme master. and it is well
That It is 50. as otherwise anarchy would in
stantlr supervene. The people require an
iron hand TO keep them down: they are like
children, nay. worse, like grown up tomboys;
strong, cruel, vindictive, who are only kept
quiet from the fear of having their heads cut
ufr
The dreadful system Of human sacrifice
xhich exists among them is founded on a
Wild idea of piety toward parents and other
connections, the chiefs fancying that the
rank Of their dead relatives in the future
world will he measured by the number of at
tendants sent after them. Thus when the
king dies wholesale slaughter takes place
There are two periods, called the Great Adai
and Little Adai, succeeding each other at in
tervals of eighteen and twenty-four days, at
which human victims, chiefly prisoners of
war or condemned criminals are often i'm
moiatsd to Il monstrous extent. On the Great
Adai, which always falls on Sunday, the
king visits the burial grounds of the princes
and the royal mausoleum at Bantama. where
the skeletons of his predecessors, their bones
held together by links of gold, sit in grim
mockery Of state
''FGtichism is their religion. Come this
way, | will show you an idol There are two
hurs, You SEE, on the ground yonder. built by
the troupe on their arrival. One is for the
men and the other for the women At the
door Of the womcn's hut. to the left on enter
ing, is Abiya, the twin goddess, who presides
over marriage and childbirth. 1t is as You
see, rough hewn wooden idol and nothing
more. They seem to see gods everywhere,
and yet they have 10 conception of a
god like We have. In fact they have no
word in their language for the Divinity.
They have Good Principle. which they neg
lect, and a Bad Principle, which they are
continually propitiatinS by sacrifices and
offerings. They fear the latter, YOU see not
the former. l am contemplating a journey
to the United States next year with a fresh
troupe, which may prove of greater interest
to Americans. | have Geen promised band
Of seventy sable virgins from the king of
Dahorley's army of Amazors."
THEODORE STANTON